Eddie Howe, Manager of Newcastle United, applauds the fans after the UEFA Champions League 2025/26 League Knockout Play-off Second Leg match between Newcastle United FC and Qarabag FK at St James' Park on February 24, 2026 in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. (Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images)placeholder image
Eddie Howe, Manager of Newcastle United, applauds the fans after the UEFA Champions League 2025/26 League Knockout Play-off Second Leg match between Newcastle United FC and Qarabag FK at St James' Park on February 24, 2026 in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. (Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Newcastle United want to go as far as they can in this season’s Champions League.
The Magpies won the first-leg 6-1 in Azerbaijan and followed that up with a 3-2 win at St James’ Park on Tuesday night.
Sandro Tonali and Joelinton scored within the opening six minutes in what was a routine first-half display. In the second-half, complacency crept in as Qarabag scored twice, either side of Sven Botman’s header.
United will face either Premier League rivals Chelsea or Barcelona, who they lost 2-1 to during the league phase, in the last 16.
Newcastle United qualify for last 16 of the Champions League
“I think it's a massive achievement for us to get to the last 16,” Howe said. “Nothing was given to us at the start of this Champions League run that we've been on.
“I think we’ve loved the new format, I think it's a really, really good thing. I think you get to see individual teams and you then get to move on to another one. We've really enjoyed it.
“And then coming to the pressure games, the double-header, I think we've navigated that really well because it's a tough... I don't care who you play at this stage, it's a tough draw.
“We did the majority of the work in the away game. We've come through really well and today we were able to rotate our squad to a degree and with mixed success, I think. I thought it was a great performance. We're really pleased that we won.
“I think that's the great thing now in our season,” Howe added. “There's a positive feel that whoever we get in the next round will be an amazing tie for us.
“I believe that we can raise our game and compete with anybody. That's what we're going to have to do, whoever we get. But I just think it's a massive thing for us to give our season an extra boost to get through this knockout phase and then into the next one.”
Eddie Howe bites back at ‘silly question’ on Champions League hopes
But Howe was keen to stress that he isn’t just content with reaching the round of 16.
When asked how much deeper he wants to go in this season’s Champions League, Howe bite back and said: “I've got to say, that's a silly question. We want to go as far as we can, and why not? I think we're good enough to do it. We have raised our game, there's no denying that.
“At times this season, even the Carabao Cup, I thought we produced some really good performances in the one-off games. The disappointment for us has been when we've returned to the Premier League and we're desperate for the consistency there. We haven't been able to do that.
“We want to find a remedy to that, but we want to continue to go far in this.
“I think that's the mindset we have to have. We have to believe in ourselves. I think we've seen the best of ourselves this year when we've gone into cup games and one-off games where we've been able to really rise to whatever challenge we've had in front of us.
“I think we'll have to go in with that mindset again in whoever we get in the next round.”
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